Chrysler Classic of Tucson
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The Chrysler Classic of Tucson was a golf tournament on the PGA Tour from 1945 to 2006. It was played annually in February in Tucson, Arizona. The tournament was last held at the Omni Tucson National Golf Resort.
The 2006 purse was $3,000,000, with $540,000 going to the winner.
Since the event's inception in 1945, it had been played at a series of courses in Tucson. From 1945-62, it was at El Rio Golf & Country Club (now known as El Rio Golf Course since the City bought it in 1968); in 1963 and again in 1964, the event moved to Forty Niner Country Club. In 1965, the event began its lengthy relationship with its last location, known at the time as Tucson National Golf Club. It was played there annually until 1980, with the exception of 1979 when it was played at Randolph Park Golf Course. From 1981-86 the event stayed at Randolph Park. From 1984 to 1986 it was contested at match play and was held concurrently with a Senior PGA Tour match play event, the Seiko-Tucson Senior Match Play Championship. In 1987 and 1988 the event was played at the TPC at Starr Pass before not being contested in 1989.
When the event resumed in 1990, it was played at two courses each year from that year's event until 1996. One used every year was the TPC at Starr Pass (renamed Starr Pass Golf Club before the 1993 event). The TPC at Starr Pass shared time with Randolph Park in 1990; from 1991-96 the Tucson National GC was the other course used. In 1997, the event changed to the more traditional format of 72 holes played at only one course, and has been played since that year at the renamed Omni Tucson National Golf Resort & Spa. In recent years, this tournament has played as an opposite field event to the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. Because the top 64 ranked players in the world are invited to the match play tournament, it weakened the field considerably for Tucson. However, the Accenture tournament will play in Tucson in 2007, as a "merging" of sorts between the two tournaments.
[edit] Winners
Chrysler Classic of Tucson
- 2006 Kirk Triplett
- 2005 Geoff Ogilvy
- 2004 Heath Slocum
- 2003 Frank Lickliter II
Touchstone Energy Tucson Open
- 2002 Ian Leggatt
- 2001 Garrett Willis
- 2000 Jim Carter
- 1999 Gabriel Hjertstedt
Tucson Chrysler Classic
- 1998 David Duval
- 1997 Jeff Sluman
Nortel Open
- 1996 Phil Mickelson
Northern Telecom Open
- 1995 Phil Mickelson
- 1994 Andrew Magee
- 1993 Larry Mize
- 1992 Lee Janzen
- 1991 Phil Mickelson (as amateur)
Northern Telecom Tucson Open
- 1990 Robert Gamez
- 1989 No tournament
- 1988 David Frost
Seiko Tucson Open
- 1987 Mike Reid
Seiko-Tucson Match Play Championship
- 1986 Jim Thorpe
- 1985 Jim Thorpe
- 1984 Tom Watson
Joe Garagiola-Tucson Open
- 1983 Gil Morgan
- 1982 Craig Stadler
- 1981 Johnny Miller
- 1980 Jim Colbert
- 1979 Bruce Lietzke
- 1978 Tom Watson
- 1977 Bruce Lietzke
NBC Tucson Open
- 1976 Johnny Miller
Dean Martin Tucson Open
- 1975 Johnny Miller
- 1974 Johnny Miller
- 1973 Bruce Crampton
- 1972 Miller Barber
Tucson Open Invitational
- 1971 J. C. Snead
- 1970 Lee Trevino
- 1969 Lee Trevino
- 1968 George Knudson
- 1967 Arnold Palmer
- 1966 Joe Campbell
- 1965 Bob Charles
- 1964 Jacky Cupit
- 1963 Don January
- 1962 Phil Rodgers
Home of the Sun Open
- 1961 Dave Hill
Tucson Open Invitational
- 1960 Don January
- 1959 Gene Littler
- 1958 Lionel Hebert
- 1957 Dow Finsterwald
- 1956 Ted Kroll
Tucson Open
- 1955 Tommy Bolt
- 1954 No tournament
- 1953 Tommy Bolt
- 1952 Henry Williams, Jr.
- 1951 Lloyd Mangrum
- 1950 Chandler Harper
- 1949 Lloyd Mangrum
- 1948 Skip Alexander
- 1947 Jimmy Demaret
- 1946 Jimmy Demaret
- 1945 Ray Mangrum
